Good for them. Frankly, despite what their intentions may be, setting the precedent for *alienating U.S. users* before being subject to the RIAA's inevitable lawsuits may be just the incitement we need to nip their overenthusiastic and somewhat obsolete litigious activities in the bud.

Think on it: if U.S. users can no longer use torrents (or more realistically, find it more difficult to use torrents) due to other companies following this ones' lead, but torrent use flourishes in other countries, how is the American public likely to react?

I'm *not* saying that the free-for-all a total collapse of enforcement agencies would initiate is a good thing; I'm suggesting that by inciting change, any inflammatory action (like this one) may help speed the inevitable reform of the copyright laws that is so needed in this country.

a sad day

AMEN TO THAT... Any USA User should not have access to a good system... reason. MAKE US USERS OUTRAGED AND GET SOME NEW OFFICIALS IN OFFICE THAT WILL DO SOMETHING ABOUT THESE OUT OF CONTROL INDUSTRIES TREATING THEIR CITIZENS AND CUSTOMERS AS CRIMINALS.

Consumer rights MUST be put back into the digital regulations. FAIR USE Must be recognized again as it was with the betamax rulings of the past.

If a generally accepted activity puts 100s of millions of the population in the category of criminal it needs to be reevaluated and changed. File sharing systems are no different then a time s***ing mechanism. If the Laws put the same Royalty fees behind the internet that they do for TV or Radio, the problem would be solved overnight. But the Industry does not want this to happen. BIG SURPRISE? Not really... They want to continue to gouge the consumers for product they do not want. With restrictions they can revoke at any whim. So you have no choice but to buy it again.

100% MPAA RIAA does nothing but work against a consumer of their product, and the more they do this the less the creators of their product get. Because those industries waste income on litigation, and intimidation and lobbying, instead of rewarding the consumer and the creators of the materials and actually do something they have not done in decades. PRODUCE!

Time s***ing and downloading music are two very different things.

Recording from the radio or television to be played later on at your leisure is very different than asking your internet buddy to send you a song he/she bought for his/her individual use.

Time s***ing is debatably legal because the broadcasting company has paid a licensing fee to broadcast at no cost to you (paid for through their advertising fees)... and from other articles I've read it seems like this fee is based on number of times played and number of listeners per market area... so its more than $0.99/song. You are taking a broadcast they've already licensed for your enjoyment with the intent to play at a time that is convenient for you.

Now, trying to justify downloading the same song off the internet because "you would have heard it on the radio anyway" is not the same thing.

One way or another, you need a license to have that song in your virtual hands... whether you purchased the song yourself under an individual license (iTunes model or buy the cd in a store) or another has licensed it on your behalf (radio/television broadcastor model).

And its entirely important to recognize who's instance of the song you have in your hands... is it the instance you lawfully purchased from iTunes or the one you time-s***ed from the radio or the one someone else didn't pay for and shared with you?

Where would any durable goods industry be if people were allowed to distribute free copies freely? Furniture.. electronics.. clothing.. automobiles.. literature... in any case, you need a license from the creator to reproduce and distribute.

Don't mistake me, the music industry needs a major overhaul... from the lyricist to the performer to the publisher to the agent to the distributor... who owns rights to what is a mess! But in the end, music is little-to-no different than other industries. Its why we have patents, copyrights, trademarks, etc. The industry being a mess doesn't make it okay to circumvent the system.

Maybe when the music industry consolidates all the hands in the cookie jar will the obvious answer of how to manage distribution be made apparent.

Go Team Consumer!!

Cheers :)

"Any USA User should not have access to a good system"

So you are penalizing the AMERICAN USER for the IDIOCY OF THE US GOVERNMENT and the GREED OF THE MONOPOLISTIC US COMPANIES. We are outraged and we ARE doing something about it...using bittorent to hurt these corporations where it counts, their pocketbooks.

So much for being "enlightened"

TorrentSpy can take their anti-freedom propreganda with them. Clearly any group that claims a foul happens when their "rights" are walked on, should understand that they should not block people just because of the country they live in. I say that groups like TorrentSpy are worst then the RIAA for doing things like this.

Its illegal to download property you have not purchased. If you believe this should be allowed then you should fight for everyone's right otherwise your no different then the group fighting to protect its work.

I dislike people who download illegal files, so I could careless they will block North America users.

Missed the point, Ramhound. They're doing it to protect US citizens, not to piss you off. They've basically said they can't guarantee the privacy of US users on their site: and so are blocking you for your own good.

Now many will say the choice should be up to them, but many more don't realise the risks. It's a safer way for all, and in some ways, self-preservation for TorrentSpy. They have little to fear from the draconian US copyright laws if there are no US users of their site.

Downloading for personal use is not illegal in Canada and the government here actually respects our right to privacy.

Although the RIAA and the MPAA are darned close to having passed legislation that makes personal downloads illegal.

That being said, is it sad that I almost said, "MPAA and RIAA are close to passing" as if they're the government. The sad truth is, in the U.S., they nearly are.

It's good to hear, though, that the court is tossing some of their BS out of courts ... and that this is slowly on the rise, as well. Good news to us, indeed.

Their altruistic motivation is, uhm, wonderful.

*laughs*

Yeah. Legal because every honest citizen buying recordable media gets to pay for the entitled twats who cannot be arsed to *buy* the content they consume.

That's better. Yeah...

Whatever turns your crank, sparky. [rolls eyes] We see just how well your type of attitude is doing in the USA now turning it into a third world dictatorship. [smiles]

Canadians aren't the ones who are losing more and more of their freedoms everyday. Its the corporate mentality of yours that is the primary cause of this. You fear your government, we don't fear ours and I feel sorry for you because of this.

Wow, you're just full of amusement...

Canadians aren't the ones who are losing more and more of their freedoms everyday.

Being fined for the actions of others isn't losing your freedom? Possibly. But in an era when we blame the RIAA for treating everyone like a criminal, the Canuks did them one better.

[i]You fear your government, we don't fear ours and I feel sorry for you because of this./i]

I do not fear my government. I would, however, fear a government that penalizes the honest citizen to appease the criminal.

"Wow, you're just full of amusement..."

Its better than what you're full of. [rolls eyes]

"Being fined for the actions of others isn't losing your freedom? Possibly. But in an era when we blame the RIAA for treating everyone like a criminal, the Canuks did them one better."

What fine? The money goes back to the artists, so in a way they are still being paid for their work.

"I do not fear my government."

Yes, you do and this is shown by the words you choose to use.

"I would, however, fear a government that penalizes the honest citizen to appease the criminal."

HAHAHAHAHAHA! You just said that you didn't fear your government. You don't have a clue.

As I had said, I truly feel sorry for you. You're your own worse enemy. Your attitude is destroying your country from the inside out. In other words your type are doing the terrorist's work for them.

Around 70% of your infrastructure as in bridges and highways are deemed unsafe because you value money over people. Freedom is like rope, get enough of it and you can hang yourself. Time to cut yourself down.

BTW, did you know that Canada is a democracy, and the USA is a republic? [smiles]

Remember what this thread is about. Torentspy is blocking access from the USA because they are worried that you're losing more of your freedoms.

What fine? The money goes back to the artists, so in a way they are still being paid for their work.

Sure, by the honest folks who never downloaded or bought their music. Not by the folks who actually *did* consume the content. Levy on recordable media=fine.

Yes, you do and this is shown by the words you choose to use

Whatever.

HAHAHAHAHAHA! You just said that you didn't fear your government.

Since when did the US institute a tax to appease those guilty of copyright infringement? Must have missed that tidbit.

BTW, did you know that Canada is a democracy, and the USA is a republic?

You're brilliant. Did you know the US is a Representative Democracy. Did you know that Canada isn't a democracy?

The Canadian Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister.

Appointed, not elected. Modeled after the British House of Lords.

Torentspy is blocking access from the USA because they are worried that you're losing more of your freedoms.

No, they just don't want to get sued. Good for them.

Don't get me wrong, aside from the levy, and the recent push for more legislation like it, I like Canada just fine. In fact, I have several relatives living there. But you'll never convince me that the levy is a decent and logical way to handle copyright infringement. (Of course, the US isn't doing much better, but at least our government isn't punishing the innocent to pay for the guilty)

FREEDOM IS ANOTHER WORD FOR NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE.................
J. Joplin

"You're brilliant. Did you know the US is a Representative Democracy. Did you know that Canada isn't a democracy?"

Wrong, The USA is a Constitutional Republic with a democratic tradition. https://www.cia.gov/libr...d-factbook/geos/us.html

Canada is a Parliamentary Democracy. https://www.cia.gov/libr...d-factbook/geos/ca.html

As for the Senate, it is not the same as the one in the USA, it is more a place where old politicians go to die, it doesn't have any real power.

Its all a matter of prospective. We don't see it as being "punished" since it is so little, plus, we also get much of our taxes back, either in the form of universal health care, better roads and infrastructure, better education (We're ranked 4th in the world in k-12 education while the USA is 18th.). If you have a family you get family allowance each month, which is 100's of $ per child, child tax credit, etc, etc... We take care of our own up here and it shows. And Ironically enough we're not in massive debt either. Our current foreign debt is around $5 billion (This is still quite low based on per capita). Also, while your debt is going up ours is being paid down. The USA is falling way behind on many important things. Torrentspy's concern about the road to tyranny that the USA is taking is real and shared by many.

I just bought a spindle of DVDs (75) and I paid $7 less than I did for the same brand (Memorex), and number, as I did 6 months ago from the same store.

Since they are not based in US, they don't have to fear US law at all. They are located in Netherlands, so they have only to abide law in Netherlands.

You got me on the US. Democracy, for the most part, implies majority rule, which I believe fails to define either country. I'd call Canada more of a Bicameral Parliamentary, but I'm just nit-picking now.

As for the levy, it boils down to being a social program for something that doesn't qualify as a necessity, the *only* acceptable government mandated taxation, in my opinion.

Healthcare, military, infrastructure, all necessary. Mp3s and Videos?

...not so much. :p

The levy and legislation like it are the only real issues I have with Canada. I have more issues with the US, but mainly due to the fact we seem to be completely ignoring our constitution as of late, so while it may be a constitutional republic in name...it's heading towards a representative democracy with little to no checks/balances. This, if any single thing, is the cause of most of our issues here right now. The House and Senate appear to have forgotten the limits placed upon them as legislative, and appear to be trying to appease big corp to gain backing to usurp executive and judicial. The very things the constitution is in place to stop.

Okay, now I'm starting to sound like a conspiracy hack. Time to hunt down some more caffeine.

blame RIAA, not TorrentSpy.

they need to use a proxy server........

Lame whiny protest methinks. There are better alternatives I'm sure.

They are also blocking Canada. Since when was Canada part of the US?

Only Toronto :-)

That is because they don't know the difference between America the country and North America the continent.

who needs canada anyway. french? i don't give a s***.

I predict a negative score coming...

Born and raised in Quebec. Perfectly bilingual and capable of recognizing stupidity when I see it. J'oses espérer que tes commentaires sont simplement une tentative a être sarcastique?

"J'oses espérer que tes commentaires sont simplement une tentative a être sarcastique?"

No idea what you just said.

I can't speak French but I more or less know exactly what he said. It's not hard to figure out. :)

Where are you in Canada? I'm from Montreal and TorrentSpy isn't blocked.

"blame cananda, not even a real country anyway."

More real than the USA. [roll eyes] We have a much higher quality of life up here as well. [smiles]

French as a language is on the decline in Canada.

Roughly translated;

"I dare to hope that your comments are simply a try must be sarcastic?"

haha you dork. Go watch Southpark the movie ... it'll make sense to you, then.

He was quoting lines from a cartoon. No huffiness!

He said, "Run for your lifes, he has a bazooka!"

http://s49.photobucket.c...ew¤t=HOH2wmv.flv

Well, duh. Some people shouldn't be allowed near a computer.

Only at work..

I spy a proxy.

Why bother, there's plenty of other good alternative sites out there.

well if you like it and dont want to change, proxy is much easier